mour her fo far as to take them out of that figure, and place them fide by fide. What the abfurdity was which I had committed I did not know, but I fuppofe there was fome traditionary superstition in it; and therefore, in obedience to the Lady of the house, I difpofed of my knife and fork in two parellel lines, which is the figure I shall always lay them in for the future, though I do not know any reason for it. It is not difficult for a man to fee that a perfon has conceived an aversion to him. For my own part, I quickly found, by the Lady's looks, that she regarded me as a very odd kind of fellow, with an unfortunate afpect. For which reason I took my leave immediately after dinner, and withdrew to my own lodgings. Upon my return home, I fell into a profound contemplation on the evils that attend these superstitious follies of mankind; how they fubject us to imaginary afflictions, and additional forrows, that do not properly come within our lot. As if the natural calamities of life were not fufficient for it, we turn the most indifferent circumstances into misfortunes, and fuffer as much from trifling accidents as from real evils. I have known the shooting of a star spoil a night's reft; and have feen a man in love grow pale and lose his appetite, upon the plucking of a merry thought. A fcreechowl at midnight has alarmed a family more than a band of robbers; nay, the voice of a cricket hath ftruck more terror than the roaring of a lion. There is nothing so inconfiderable, which may not appear dreadful to an imagination that is filled with omens and prognosticks. A rusty nail, or a crooked pin, shoot up into prodigies. I remember I was once in a mixed assembly, that was full of noise and mirth, when on a fudden an old woman unluckily observed there were thirteen of us in company. This remark struck a panick terror into several who were present, infomuch that one one or two of the Ladies were going to leave the room; but a friend of mine, taking notice that one of our female companions was big with child, affirmed there were fourteen in the room, and that, inftead of portending one of the company should die, it plainly foretold one of them should be born. Had not my friend found out this expedient to break the omen, I question not but half the women in the company would have fallen fick that very night. An old maid, that is troubled with the vapours, produces infinite disturbances of this kind among her friends and neighbours. I know a maiden aunt, of a great family, who is one of these antiquated Sybils, that forebodes and prophefies from one end of the year to the other. She is always feeing apparitions, and hearing death-watches; and was the other day almost frighted out of her wits by the great house-dog, that howled in the stable at a time when the lay ill of the toothach. Such an extravagant caft of mind engages multitudes of people, not only in impertinent terrors, but in fupernumerary duties of life; and arifes from that fear and ignorance which are natural to the foul of man. The horror with which we entertain the thoughts of death (or indeed of any future evil) and the uncertainty of its approach, fill a melancholy mind with innumerable apprehenfions and fufpicions, and confequently difpofe it to the obfervation of fuch groundless prodigies and predictions. For, as it is the chief concern of wife men to retrench the evils of life by the reasonings of philofophy, it is the employment of fools to multiply them by the fentiments of fuperftition. For my own part, I should be very much troubled were I endowed with this divining quality, tho' it should inform me truly of every thing that can befal me. I would not anticipate the relish of any. happiness, nor feel the weight of any mifery, before it actually arrives. 1 I know but one way of fortifying my foul againft these gloomy presages and terrours of mind, and that is, by fecuring to myself the friendship and protection of that Being who disposes of events, and governs futurity. He fees, at one view, the whole thread of my existence, not only that part of it which I have already pafied through, but that which runs forward into all the depths of eternity. When I lay me down to fleep, I recommend myfelf to his care; when I awake, I give myself up to his direction. Amidst all the evils that threaten me, I will look up to him for help, and question not but he will either avert them, or turn them to my advantage. Though I know neither the time nor the manner of the death I am to die, I am not at all follicitous about it; because I am fure that he knows them both, and that he will not fail to comfort and fupport me under them. N° 8. FRIDAY, MARCH 9. C At Venus obfcuro gradientes aëre fepfit, a I Shall here communicate to the world couple of letters, which I believe will give the reader as good an entertainment as any that I am able to fur nish him with, and therefore shall make no apolo gy for them. 6 'SIR, To the SPECTATOR, &C. I Am one of the directors of the fociety for the reformation of manners, and therefore ' think 6 ' think myself a proper person for your correspondence. I have thorougly examined the present state of religion in Great Britain, and am able to acquaint you with the predominant vice of every market-town in the whole island. I can tell you the progress that virtue has made in all our cities, boroughs, and corporations; and know as well the evil practices that are committed in Berwick or Exeter, as what is done in my own family. In a word, Sir, I have my correspondents in the remoteft parts of the nation, who fend me up punctual accounts from time to time of all • the little irregularities, that fall under their no'tice in their several districts and divifions. I am no less acquainted with the particular quarters and regions of this great town, than ' with the different parts and distributions of the whole nation. I can defcribe every parish by its impieties, and can tell you in which of our fstreets ' lewdness prevails, which gaming has taken poffef• fion of, and where drunkenness has got the bet' ter of them both. When I am disposed to raife 6 6 6 a fine for the poor, I know the lanes and allies. ' that are inhabited by common fwearers. When I would encourage the hofpital of Bridewell, and improve the hempen manufacture, I am very well acquainted with all the haunts and reforts of female night-walkers. 6 6 After this short account of myself, I must let you know, that the defign of this paper is to give you information of a certain irregular affembly, ' which I think falls very properly under your ob' servation, especially fince the perfons it is compofed of are criminals too confiderable for the animadverfions of our fociety. I mean, Sir, the midnight mask, which has of late been very frequently held in one of the most confpicuous parts ' of the town, and which I hear will be continued ⚫ with additions and improvements. As all the 6 6 6 perfons 1 'perfons who compose this lawless affembly are 'masked, we dare not attack any of them in our 6 6 way, left we should fend a woman of quality to 'Bridewell, or a peer of Great Britain to the Counter: Befides that their numbers are so very great, that I am afraid they would be able to rout our 'whole fraternity, though we were accompanied with all our guard of conftables. Both these rea'fons, which fecure them from our authority, make them obnoxious to yours; as both their difguife and their numbers will give no particular perfon reafon to think himself affronted by you. 'If we are rightly informed, the rules that are * observed by this new fociety are wonderfully con'trived for the advancement of cuckoldom. ، 6 6 The women either come by thenselves, or are intro' duced by friends who are obliged to quit them, upon their first entrance, to the converfation of any body that addresses himself to them. There are feveral rooms where the parties may retire, and, if they please, shew their faces by confent. Whispers, squeezes, nods, and embraces, are the innocent freedoms of the place. In short, the whole defign of this libidinous afsembly, feems to ' terminate in affignations and intrigues; and I hope you will take effectual methods, by your public advice and admonitions, to prevent fuch a promiscuous multitude of both sexes from meeting together in so clandestine a manner. I am, 6 6 Your humble fervant, And fellow-labourer, T. В. Not long after the perusal of this letter, I received another upon the fame fubject; which, by the date and style of it, I take to be written by fome young Templar. 6 SIR, Middle-Temple, 1710-11. W Hen a man has been guilty of any vice or folly, I think the best atonement he |